JP4100370B2 - rice cooker - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a rice cooker for cooking rice by immersing rice in a pot in water.

In general, in order to obtain delicious rice, it is known that rice should be cooked after sufficient water is contained in the rice. Therefore, in a conventional rice cooker, a water absorption process is provided at the initial stage of rice cooking, and the water temperature is maintained at a temperature (about 55 ° C.) just before the start of gelatinization of the rice grains for a certain period of time, which is sufficient for rice grains in a short time. After water absorption, the food is cooked (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62-16725

  However, in such a conventional rice cooker, when the user manually immerses the rice in water before the start of rice cooking, in order to manually adjust the water absorption state in order to realize his / her favorite cooking, predetermined Although it has a function to omit the water absorption process by the operation of, because it does not display a guideline until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state, whether to omit the water absorption process has to rely on the experience of the user It is difficult to cook rice with the same water absorption condition at all times.

  The present invention solves the above-described conventional problems, and informs the user of a guideline until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state, so that delicious rice can be cooked according to the user's preference and the usability is improved. The purpose is that.

The present invention for the to achieve the above object, a pot in rice cooker body put rice and water freely accommodated detachably, the opening and closing state of the outer lid of the cooker body detected by the outer lid closing detection means, the outer lid When the open / close detection means detects that the outer lid has changed from the open state to the closed state for a certain time or more, it is determined that the rice has been immersed, the immersion time is measured by the immersion time measurement means , and the display means display operation Are controlled by the control means, and when the control means determines that the rice has been immersed by a signal from the outer lid opening / closing detection means, the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state based on the information from the immersion time measuring means. The remaining immersion time is displayed on the display means as a guideline until reaching the above.

  As a result, when the user manually immerses the rice in the water before the start of cooking, it is possible to know the standard of the immersion time, and it is easy to adjust the water absorption state desired by the user, which is in the user's preference. Delicious rice can be cooked, improving usability.

  The rice cooker of the present invention allows the user to know the standard of the immersion time when the rice is manually immersed in water before the start of rice cooking, making it easier to adjust the water absorption state desired by the user, You can cook delicious rice that suits your taste and improve usability.

A first invention is a detachably housed rice cooker body in which rice and water are placed, an outer lid opening / closing detection means for detecting an open / closed state of the outer lid of the rice cooker body, and an outer lid opening / closing detection means. When it is detected that the outer lid has changed from the open state to the closed state for a certain time or longer, it is determined that the rice has been immersed, and the immersion time measuring means for starting the immersion time measurement and the display means for performing the display operation And a control means for controlling the display operation of the display means, and when the control means determines that the rice has been immersed by a signal from the outer lid opening / closing detection means, When configured to display the remaining immersion time on the display means as a guideline until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state based on the information, the user manually immerses the rice in water before the start of cooking In addition, it is possible to know the standard of immersion time Runode, will easily adjust to the water-absorbing state desired by the user, it is possible to cook a delicious rice that was the preference of the user, it is possible to improve the usability.

2nd invention is provided with the pan temperature detection means which detects the temperature of a pan in the said 1st invention, and a control means becomes a predetermined water absorption state based on the temperature detected by the said pan temperature detection means. It is easy to adjust the water absorption state desired by the user when the user manually immerses the rice before the start of cooking, and it was in the user's preference. Delicious rice can be cooked, improving usability.

3rd invention is equipped with the rice cooking course change means which instruct | indicates the change of a rice cooking course in the said 1st or 2nd invention, A control means is rice according to the rice cooking course changed by the said rice cooking course change means. The water absorption state desired by the user regardless of the selected rice cooking course when the user manually immerses the rice before the start of rice cooking. It is easy to adjust and can improve usability.

4th invention is equipped with the immersion standard change means which can change manually the standard until rice becomes a predetermined | prescribed water absorption state in any one invention of the said 1st- 3rd , and a control means changes the said immersion standard. Based on the input from the means, the guideline until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state is changed. When the user manually immerses the rice before the start of cooking, the user wants A guide can be displayed, it becomes easy to adjust accurately according to the water absorption state desired by the user, delicious rice suited to the user's preference can be cooked, and usability can be improved.

5th invention is provided with the memory | storage means which memorize | stores the standard changed by the immersion standard change means in the said 4th invention, and the control means judges that the immersion of rice was started by the signal from an outer lid open / close detection means Then, the indication memorized in the storage means is displayed on the display means. When the user manually immerses the rice before the start of cooking, the user will be able to The troublesomeness of changing to a desired standard can be eliminated, and it becomes easy to adjust to the water absorption state desired by the user, and the usability can be improved.

6th invention is provided with the alerting | reporting means which performs alerting | reporting operation | movement in any one invention of the said 1st- 5th , The said alerting | reporting means that a control means alert | reports that when a rice becomes a predetermined | prescribed water absorption state. When the user manually immerses the rice before the start of cooking, the user can forget that the user has soaked and be alerted not to fail in water absorption. Therefore, usability can be improved.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a rice cooker in Embodiment 1 of the present invention. Moreover, FIG. 4 shows the display operation part of the rice cooker of Embodiment 1 of this invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the pan 1 is made of a magnetic material such as stainless steel or iron, and contains rice and water and is detachably stored in a rice cooker body (not shown). The heating coil 2 generates an alternating magnetic field by the high-frequency current supplied by the inverter 10 and induction-heats the pan 1 with this alternating magnetic field. The pan temperature detecting means 6 detects the temperature of the pan 1, is composed of a thermistor, and detects temperature based on a resistance value.

  The immersion time measuring means 5 and the control means 3 are constituted by a microcomputer 11. The control means 3 controls the inverter 10 based on a predetermined rice cooking sequence to control the heating output. Further, the buzzer (not shown) as the notification means 7 and the LCD 14 as the display means 8 are controlled, and the input from the soaking remaining time changing key 15 as the soaking standard changing means 9 is received, and the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state. This changes the remaining immersion time, which is a guideline until it becomes.

  The soaking time measuring means 5 measures the soaking time of rice based on a signal from the outer lid opening / closing detection means 4 for detecting the open / closed state of an outer lid (not shown) that covers the upper surface of the pan 1 so as to be freely opened and closed. Yes, when it is detected that the outer lid has been changed from the open state to the closed state for a predetermined time or more, it is determined that the rice has been immersed, and the measurement of the immersion time is started. It is assumed that the immersion time is initialized after a certain time (in this embodiment, 3 seconds) has elapsed after detecting that the outer lid has been opened. At this time, providing a grace period for initialization of the soaking time is due to the user's act of opening the outer lid to confirm the presence of the pan 1 and the contents of the pan 1 before starting cooking rice. On the other hand, the dipping time is not initialized.

  The storage means 13 corresponds to the RAM in the microcomputer 11 and stores a guideline until the rice changed by the soaking guide changing means 9 is in a predetermined water absorption state.

  The outer lid opening / closing detection means 4 is configured as shown in FIG. 2 and is arranged in the outer lid. The float 16 is a spherical magnet, and the float detector 17 is a reed switch that opens and closes a contact point by the magnetism of the float 16. Since the float 16 is on the inclined groove 18, the float 16 moves to the float detection unit 17 side when the outer lid is closed, and conversely, when the outer lid is open, the float 16 moves to the float detection unit. Move to the opposite side of 17. The movement of the float 16 changes the influence of magnetism on the float detection unit 17, so that the contact of the float detection unit 17 opens and closes, and it is possible to detect opening and closing of the outer lid.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the immersion guide changing means 9 is constituted by a remaining immersion time changing key 15 so that the user can change the remaining immersion time displayed on the LCD 14 as the display means 8. The rice cooking course changing means 12 is constituted by a course key 19 so that the user can select a rice cooking course such as a white rice course or a germinated brown rice course.

  The operation and action of the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. First, in step S1, it is detected by the outer lid opening / closing detection means 4 whether the outer lid is open. If it is open, the process proceeds to step S2, but if it is closed, the process returns to step S1, and step S1 is repeated until it is opened. In step S2, it is determined whether or not the open state of the outer lid has continued for a certain time (3 seconds) in order to determine whether or not the pan 1 has been set for rice cooking preparation.

  If it is less than a certain time (3 seconds), it is determined that the pan 1 has not been set, and the process returns to step S1. If a certain time (3 seconds) has elapsed, the outer lid is set for a long time to prepare for cooking. It judges with having opened, it progresses to Step S3, initialization of immersion time is performed, and initialization of remaining immersion time is performed at the following Step S4. The initial value of the remaining immersion time is a value up to a predetermined water absorption state recommended by a development manufacturer set in advance.

  In step S5, it is determined whether the outer lid is closed. At this time, if it is still open, step S5 is repeated until it is closed. If the outer lid is closed, the remaining immersion time is displayed on the LCD 14 as the display means 8 in step S6 as shown in FIG. For example, in this embodiment, 50 minutes is displayed as the initial value of the white rice course. In step S7, the counting of the immersion time is started, and in step S8, the remaining immersion time is calculated. In the present embodiment, when the remaining immersion time is 0 minute or less, minus display such as −1 minute and −2 minutes is performed.

  Next, it is determined whether there exists a request | requirement of rice cooking start by step S9. At this time, if there is a request to start cooking, the process proceeds to step S10, and rice cooking is started. If there is no request to start cooking, the process proceeds to step S11.

  Here, since the counting start of the immersion time in the above-described step S7 is determined by the time that the outer lid is open regardless of the presence or absence of the pan 1 or the presence or absence of the contents of the pan 1, the outer lid is If the pan 1 has not been set before step S5 for determining whether or not it is closed, it is necessary to open the outer lid again. Therefore, in step S11, the state of the outer lid is detected again.

  If the outer lid remains closed, the process returns to step S6, the remaining immersion time is displayed, and the immersion time counting in step S7 is continued. If the outer lid is open, the process proceeds to step S12. It is determined whether the open state of the outer lid lasts for a certain time (3 seconds). Here, if it is less than a certain time (3 seconds), it is determined that the presence or absence of the pot 1 or the contents of the pot 1 is confirmed, and the process returns to step S6 to continue displaying the remaining immersion time and counting the immersion time. However, if a certain time (3 seconds) has elapsed, it is determined that the pan 1 has been set, and the process proceeds to step S13, where the immersion time is initialized, and in step S14, the remaining immersion time is initialized. Do.

  In step S15, it is determined whether or not the outer lid is closed. At this time, if it is still open, step S15 is repeated until it is closed. If the outer lid is closed, the process returns to step S6 to newly display the remaining immersion time and start counting the immersion time.

  As described above, in this embodiment, when it is determined that the rice has been immersed based on the signal from the outer lid opening / closing detection means 4, the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state based on the information from the immersion time measuring means 5. By controlling the display means 8 to display the remaining immersion time until the rice is manually immersed in water before the start of cooking, it is possible to know the approximate immersion time. It becomes easy to adjust to the water absorption state desired by the user, and user convenience can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, the heating coil 2 is used to heat the pan 1, but this may be a heating method using a heater, a gas combustion appliance, or the like.

  In this embodiment, the remaining time of immersion is displayed as a guideline until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state, but this may be a graph indicating the immersion time or the immersion state, and the user soaks the rice. Anything can be used as a guideline.

(Embodiment 2)
The control means 3 shown in FIG. 1 changes the standard until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state based on the temperature detected by the pan temperature detection means 6. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

  The operation and action of the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. The operation from step S1 to step S15 is the same as the operation in the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  After initializing the remaining immersion time to a predetermined value set in step S4 and detecting that the outer lid is closed in step S5, the pan temperature detecting means 6 detects the pan temperature in step S16. Then, the remaining immersion time is changed based on the pan temperature detected in step S17, and the remaining immersion time is displayed in the next step S6. The reason why the remaining immersion time is changed depending on the temperature of the pan thus detected is that the water absorption speed of the rice changes depending on the water temperature during the immersion, and accordingly, the immersion time until the predetermined water absorption state is also changed. . For example, in this embodiment, if the water temperature is determined to be 30 ° C., it is decremented by 10 minutes from the initialized remaining immersion time, and if the water temperature is determined to be 5 ° C., the initialized immersion remaining time is 30 minutes. Change to the value plus minutes.

  In step S15, it is determined whether or not the outer lid is closed. If the outer lid is open, step S15 is repeated until the outer lid is closed. If it is closed, the process returns to step S16 to detect the pan temperature again.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, by changing the remaining immersion time until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state based on the temperature detected by the pan temperature detecting means 6, the user can start cooking rice. When the rice is soaked manually, it is easy to adjust accurately according to the water absorption state desired by the user, delicious rice that meets the user's preference can be cooked, and usability can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, the remaining immersion time is used as a guideline until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state. However, this may be a graph showing the immersion time or the immersion status. Anything can be used as a guideline.

(Embodiment 3)
The control means 3 shown in FIG. 1 changes the standard until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state according to the rice cooking course changed by the rice cooking course changing means 12 that instructs to change the rice cooking course. Other configurations are the same as those of the second embodiment.

  The operation and action of the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. The operation from step S1 to step S17 is the same as the operation in the second embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  After initializing the remaining immersion time to a predetermined value set in advance in step S4, if it is detected that the outer lid is closed in step S5, the course key 19 (see FIG. 4) to determine whether there is a change (selection) request for the rice cooking course. If there is a change request, the rice cooking course is changed in step S19, and the remaining immersion time is changed according to the rice cooking course changed in the next step S20. For example, in this embodiment, when the rice cooking course is changed from the white rice course to the germinated brown rice course, the remaining immersion time is changed from 50 minutes, which is the initial value of the white rice course, to 1 hour, which is the initial value of the germinated brown rice course. If there is no change request, it is determined that the course is a white rice course, and the process proceeds to step S16 to detect the pot temperature.

  In step S15, it is determined whether or not the outer lid is closed. If it is open, step S15 is repeated until it is closed. If it is closed, the process returns to step S18, and there is no request for selecting a rice cooking course again. judge.

  As mentioned above, in this Embodiment, according to the rice cooking course changed by the rice cooking course change means 12, a user cooks rice by changing the immersion remaining time until a rice will be in a predetermined water absorption state. When the rice is soaked manually before the start, regardless of the selected rice cooking course, it becomes easy to adjust to the water absorption state desired by the user, and usability can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, the remaining immersion time is used as a guideline until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state. However, this may be a graph showing the immersion time or the immersion status. Anything can be used as a guideline.

(Embodiment 4)
The control means 3 shown in FIG. 1 changes the standard until the rice reaches the predetermined water absorption state based on the input from the immersion standard changing means 9 that can manually change the standard until the rice reaches the predetermined water absorption state. I am doing so. Other configurations are the same as those of the third embodiment.

  The operation and action of the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. The operation from step S1 to step S27 is the same as the operation in the third embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  After the remaining immersion time is displayed on the LCD 14 in step S6, it is determined in step S21 whether there is a request for changing the remaining immersion time from the remaining immersion time changing key 15 which is the remaining immersion time changing means 9. If there is a request, the process proceeds to step S22 and the remaining immersion time is changed. For example, in the present embodiment, there are an UP key and a DOWN key as the remaining immersion time change key 15. If the UP key is pressed, the remaining rice cooking time is increased by 1 minute, and if the DOWN key is pressed, the remaining rice cooking time is decreased by 1 minute. It shall be. In step S7, the remaining immersion time is counted. If there is no request to change the remaining immersion time, the process proceeds to step S7 as it is.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, by changing the remaining immersion time based on the input from the remaining immersion time changing means 9, when the user manually immerses the rice before the start of cooking, it is used. The user can display his / her desired remaining immersion time, making it easier to adjust accurately according to the water absorption state desired by the user, cooking delicious rice that matches the user's preference, and improving usability it can.

  In the present embodiment, the remaining immersion time is used as a guideline until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state. However, this may be a graph showing the immersion time or the immersion status. Anything can be used as a guideline.

(Embodiment 5)
When the control means 3 shown in FIG. 1 determines that the rice has been dipped in response to a signal from the outer lid opening / closing detection means 4, the indication changed by the dipping indication change means 9 stored in the storage means 12 is displayed on the display means 8. To be displayed. Other configurations are the same as those of the fourth embodiment.

  The operation and action of the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. Note that the operations from step S1 to step S22 except for step S4 and step S14 are the same as the operations of the above-described fourth embodiment, and thus description thereof is omitted.

  In step S21, there is a request for changing the remaining immersion time. After changing the remaining immersion time in step S22, the changed remaining immersion time and the cooking course are stored in the storage unit 13 in step S23. And at the time of initialization of remaining immersion time in step S4 and step S14, based on the present rice cooking course, the immersion remaining time memorize | stored in the memory | storage means 13 is set as an initial value.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, by displaying the remaining immersion time stored in the storage unit 12 at the start of rice soaking on the display unit 8, the user manually soaks the rice before the start of rice cooking. In this case, the user can eliminate the annoyance of changing the standard for making the water absorption desired by the user every time the rice is cooked, making it easier to adjust the water absorption desired by the user, Usability can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, the remaining immersion time is used as a guideline until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state. However, this may be a graph showing the immersion time or the immersion status. Anything can be used as a guideline.

(Embodiment 6)
The control means 3 shown in FIG. 1 controls the notification means 7 so as to notify that when the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state. Other configurations are the same as those of the fifth embodiment.

  The operation and action of the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. The operation from step S1 to step S23 is the same as the operation in the fifth embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  After calculating the remaining immersion time in step S8, it is determined in step S24 whether the remaining immersion time has become 0 minutes. If it is 0 minutes, notification is performed by the buzzer as the notification means 7 in step S25. And it progresses to step S9 and it is determined whether there exists a request | requirement of a rice cooking start. If the remaining immersion time has not reached 0 minutes, the process proceeds to step S9.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, when the remaining immersion time becomes 0 minutes, the user manually immerses the rice until the start of cooking rice by controlling the notification means 7 to notify that fact. In this case, it is possible to forget that the user has soaked the water and to call attention so as not to fail the water absorption, so the usability can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, a buzzer is used as the notification means 7, but this is configured to notify the user and alert the user when a predetermined time has passed so that the user does not fail to absorb water. Anything is fine.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the remaining immersion time is used as a guideline until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state, but this may be a graph showing the immersion time or the immersion status, and the user can immerse the rice. Anything can be used as a guideline.

  As described above, the rice cooker according to the present invention can know the standard of the immersion time when the user manually immerses the rice in water before the start of rice cooking, and adjusts the water absorption state desired by the user. It becomes easy and can cook delicious rice that suits the user's preference and can improve usability, so it is useful as a rice cooker that immerses rice in a pot in water and cooks it.

The block diagram of the rice cooker in Embodiment 1 of this invention. Sectional view of outer lid open / close detection means of the rice cooker Operation flowchart of the rice cooker Front view of the display operation unit of the rice cooker Operation flowchart of rice cooker in Embodiment 2 of the present invention Operation flowchart of rice cooker in Embodiment 3 of the present invention Operation flowchart of rice cooker in embodiment 4 of the present invention Operation flowchart of rice cooker in embodiment 5 of the present invention Operation flowchart of rice cooker in Embodiment 6 of the present invention

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pan 3 Control means 4 Outer lid open / close detection means 5 Immersion time measurement means 8 Display means

Claims (6)

A pan in which rice and water are detachably stored in the rice cooker body, an outer lid opening / closing detection means for detecting the open / closed state of the outer lid of the rice cooker body, and the outer lid opening / closing detection means for a certain period of time. When it is detected that the open state has been changed to the closed state, it is determined that the rice has been immersed, the immersion time measuring means for starting the measurement of the immersion time , the display means for performing the display operation, and the display means Control means for controlling the display operation, and when the control means determines that the rice has been immersed by a signal from the outer lid opening / closing detection means, the rice is based on the information from the immersion time measuring means. A rice cooker configured to display the remaining immersion time on the display means as a guideline until a predetermined water absorption state is reached. Comprising a pot temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the pan, the control means according to claim 1, wherein the rice based on temperature detected by the pan temperature detecting means has to change the measure until a predetermined water absorption state Rice cooker. A rice cooking course changing means for instructing the change of the rice cooking course is provided, and the control means changes the standard until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state according to the rice cooking course changed by the rice cooking course changing means. The rice cooker according to claim 1 or 2 . A dipping standard changing means that can manually change the standard until the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state is provided, and the control means determines a standard until the rice reaches a predetermined water absorption state based on the input from the dipping standard changing means. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the rice cooker is changed. A storage means for storing the guideline changed by the soaking guideline changing means is provided, and when the control means judges that the rice soaking has been started by a signal from the outer lid opening / closing detection means, the guideline stored in the storage means is displayed. The rice cooker according to claim 4 , which is displayed on the means. The notification means according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , further comprising a notification means for performing a notification operation, wherein the control means controls the notification means so as to notify that when the rice is in a predetermined water absorption state. rice cooker.

Images